Hare of Misfortune

Rachel sat back and voiced what came to mind. ”To be fair, my time in Anthony’s quest and Conner’s Legend Quest was compressed.”

”Sure,” Tom said, acknowledging her questioning nod. ”From your original report, your first quest with Anthony was stretched slightly, but Conner’s was stretched dramatically more. For that reason, we are starting to consider that a lesser god may be involved in this incident. At least, the option is open.

”The implications are huge, and though Izanami said yours was a unique circumstance, if these—or any—aliens have access to higher powers...”

Rachel sighed, knowing it would be a hell of a lot worse if these creatures somehow invoked a higher being’s power for this attack. ”True. All the more to investigate it.”

Pointing at the correlating sections of the sheet, Tom made a few more notes on the paper. ”Progress is slow since information is so sporadic and unverified. Our observations from a few sample quests, such as Barbara and Anthony’s, tell us their time shenanigans are normally more discreet.”

”My own Crystal at the college ran parallel with the outside time,” she agreed, scanning the cliff notes from the report on her experience. ”In High Rolls, you were able to verify there had been a time difference due to the still-functioning mechanical clocks inside houses. Spooky.”

Tom rubbed his face. ”More than that. Ugh. It’s a damn migraine-inducing shitstorm. How do twenty-three minutes turn into two days inside? Even your account in the Legend Quest wasn’t nearly that large of a time dilation. Yet, all other factors we have, besides yours, tell us time should be linked and congruent between the bridged worlds, which means we’re missing something.”

She tapped on a report. ”Either the clocks were tampered with or time itself was changed...perhaps both. It is troubling, I agree...

”Still, they did have their issues. It seems like they first destroyed anything producing high volumes of sound, which gives the impression that they might be sensitive to specific frequency ranges. The toads could enter a sand-like state but had to solidify to attack. There are weaknesses to exploit. Wait, this doesn’t look like the Crystal I was in?”

He looked up at her as she studied a massive crystal structure. ”Ah, I should backtrack a little... We were lucky enough to get a few pictures of it, though mostly grainy, from people as they drove past. An immaterial cube-shaped crystal, roughly fifteen meters in width and height. It was a purplish color with a greenish glow, and it was much bigger than the six-meter cone one on your campus... Inside, you can see there was a cave being reflected.”

Leo rubbed his face and got to his feet to reach another file. ”Yes, it was horrible, Tom, and there was nothing we could do about that, but this is the immediate concern. Look,” he prompted, tossing her one to open. ”We have a rough estimation from a few smaller incidents reported across the globe that the shape and color somehow correlate with its strength.”

Rachel nodded, sliding through a few photos; it was obvious they wanted her skill set in one of these. ”You’ve ranked them by levels, and size increases the number of attackers that can enter...

”Level 1: Green

”Level 2: Blue... It’s still insane to me that the toads were only Level 2... Hmm.

”Level 3: Purple, and...

”Level 4: Pink... There’s another one?”

Tom got up to give her yet another sealed document. He broke the band and opened it, laying the photo out in front of her. ”This was in Mutumbo, Angola, Africa... We’re sending a team to scope it out, but we expect it to be already done. It’s still under investigation, but here’s the chilling part. Turn to the next page. That’s a satellite image taken five minutes apart.”

A shiver ran through Rachel’s spine. ”It...changed? It was a Level 2, and it jumped to Level 4... The whole landscape is a black crater,” she mumbled, turning to the 3rd photo.

Leo gave her one last folder. ”Yes. It’s as if it were hit by a meteor, and this...this is a photo taken twenty minutes ago in Billings, Montana.”

”Shit...”

Rachel spread the images out, seeing the full scope of the city, where a 35-meter-tall tetrahedron stood in a supermarket parking lot; it was purple, the same color as the High Rolls Crystal, only this one was still transparent, indicating it wasn’t active yet.

”We aren’t sure what the glowing outline means yet,” Tom said, sliding her a new sheet. ”We’re talking about a population of over a hundred and twenty thousand... We cannot let what happened in New Mexico happen here. That...that’s double the casualties across all of the Vietnam War, and an attack like that...on US soil... This is tantamount to a launched nuclear warhead, waiting to explode.”

Rachel breathed out a hot puff of air as the Secret Service knocked on the door to inform the President that Arthur was there. ”Wow. That is a lot of pressure. Astra showed that you ordered an evacuation?”

Leo forced a laugh. ”On a scale that large? It takes time not to incite a panic and figure out how to humanely relocate them. Tom is scouting out other changed people who seem to have unique skills. And if you can convince the others in the Miami incident to join you, then I’m not opposed... Considering the lives at risk, I’ll consider almost anything. So rest up because your country needs you at your best.”

Rachel rubbed between her eyes as they cleaned up the folders, pulled a curtain over the board, and took her outside. On her way out, she passed a very handsome blond man wearing a tailored suit and a red tie. He gave her a friendly wave as they crossed. She could feel a positive vibe from him, only in a different way than the saints.

”Good afternoon.”

”Hi,” Rachel responded.

And that was it. Entering the hallway, Rachel had Barbara wheel her up to a waiting room where she could listen in. The saint gave her an encouraging smile, having chosen a place outside of the sun.

”I know I haven’t said it yet, and I’m sure it’s been said by others, but thank you for the help you gave me back in Miami, Rachel. The city seems to be stabilizing faster than most, and I’d consider that a result of your action.”

A pained laugh shook Rachel’s chest as she saw the many Secret Service agents checking everyone who passed by. She couldn’t believe she was in the White House and had just had a meeting about the fate of the world with the President. It almost felt like a dream.

”That happens when you take out a huge chunk of the criminal underground and have someone like Maria, who has contacts to fill the void... Damn. Well, I should probably change.”

Barbara gave her a curious look as she contacted Nia, waiting for the three men downstairs to get past the introductions and foreplay politics.

You have a new outfit for me, Captain Big Bun? Actually, being able to communicate from long distances like this is extremely useful. You really are my lucky rabbit’s foot.

Nia snorted. ”Thank you, Major. Well, this lucky rabbit’s foot is close to shrinking, so I’ll be quick. All of us picked out the outfit. I tried my best to make it fit for a formal dinner. Changing it now.”

Rachel glanced down as her clothes began to twinkle, illuminating before the light solidified into a simple yet beautiful combination.

A modest, fitted white blouse that was loose enough to be comfortable, a violet, tiered shin-high skirt that sparkled when it caught the light, and a black floral belt with a bow angled to the side; its lilac-hued petals complemented the skirt well. The three-inch heels matched the purple color scheme; their strap buckle and trim were bronze, creating a classy look that complemented the gold bracelet on her right wrist.

”What do you think, Major?”

I think you four did phenomenally! Give everyone my thanks. It helps to have a twin to go out shopping for me.

”Aww. Stop it! You’re going to make me blush,” Nia chuckled. ”It’s been a real treat being able to spend time with your family.”

Oooh! And all the treats that she buys you?

”I won’t say that isn’t a bonus,” she mused. ”Also, an FYI, Major, we can send out Delphinus as long as we want, but the moment we enter combat, his time limit is triggered. What do you want to do with him?”